People who think they need an incredible workspace to be productive unknowingly sabotage their success. How? They spend more time focusing on making their workspace look awesome, instead of spending time on their actual work. It’s foolish.
For a long time, that was me. I cared way too much about having an incredible workspace that would look great in Instagram photos. As a result, I rarely got any work done. Looking back, my obsession with making my workspace “perfect” was just a form of procrastination.
In his book, “The War Of Art,” Steven Pressfield wrote a few lines that resonated with me on a profound level. They go like this:
“The most important thing about art is to work. Nothing else matters except sitting down every day and trying.”
He’s totally right. You don’t need a fancy workspace to be productive. Instead, your ability to work efficiently is determined solely by your mindset. Here’s how to improve it, so you can fulfill your potential in every aspect of your career.
Listen To Music That Inspires You
Research published by Entrepreneur Magazine shows that:
“Music isn’t just a means of entertaining ourselves. It can also encourage creativity and help us become more productive. Listening to music can also be therapeutic, relieving feelings of stress so you can concentrate better.”
That makes total sense. I listen to a lot of classical music while writing, as it helps me to focus on my work. As a result, it’s incredibly easy to enter a flow state and work extremely efficiently.
You can do the same. Find a playlist that inspires you to achieve your potential while working. It doesn’t matter if it’s classical, rap, or any other type of music. Experiment with a variety of genres, and see what works. Once you implement this strategy, your levels of creativity will soar.
Read Content From People You Admire
If you want to have a productive mindset, it’s important to read as much as you possibly can. Quoting a study by Yale that was published in INC magazine:
“The practice of reading books creates cognitive engagement that improves lots of things, including vocabulary, thinking skills, and concentration.”
For example, if you’re a sales manager, reading books and listening to podcasts about leadership is certainly a great idea. Similarly, if you’re a writer, you may want to read loads of books about creativity.
Every day, I listen to podcasts and interviews from some of the most well-known writers and entrepreneurs around the world. The reason? I try to understand their mindset, so I can adopt a similar way of thinking.
Apply what you learn to your work, and the trajectory of your career will massively improve. After all, you’ll constantly be learning strategies and techniques from some of the most prominent people in your field of expertise.
If you learn something new every single day, the power of compound interest will create a completely different mindset over time.
Reconnect With Nature
I love exploring my local area. One of my favorite things to do is walk along the shore of Lake Ontario and watch the waves splash onto the beach. It’s incredibly peaceful.
According to research published by Time Magazine, “spending time outdoors, especially in green spaces, is one of the fastest ways to improve your health and happiness. It’s been shown to lower stress, blood pressure, and heart rate while encouraging physical activity and buoying mood and mental health.”
Spending the entirety of your day indoors isn’t great for your mental health. So whenever you get an opportunity, explore nature. Or if you’re unable to visit a local park or lake, going for a quick walk around your neighborhood is certainly better than nothing.
Take Breaks Throughout The Day
This should be obvious. But you’re not going to stay productive if you focus on your work for the entire day. Instead, you need to take regular breaks to alleviate any feelings of anxiety or stress. Quoting an article written by Ellen Hendriksen in Psychology Today:
“Stopping to stare out the window or cuddle with your dog can feel lazy, guilt-inducing, willpower-taxing, or logistically impossible. However, done right, breaks can boost focus, recharge your batteries, and make you more productive, not to mention happier.”
I work in blocks of thirty minutes and then take a ten-minute break. However, it’s essential to experiment with various schedules and then continue with whatever works for you.
Grab a coffee, talk to your family, or do anything else that will help take your mind off work for a couple of minutes. Once you implement this strategy, the effect it’ll have on your productivity is profound.
Make Sure You Get Enough Sleep
If you deprive yourself of sleep, it’ll be incredibly difficult to remain productive throughout the day. Quoting the neuroscientist, Matthew Walker:
“Sleep is the single most effective thing we can do to reset our brain and body health each day.”
On average, most people require eight hours. However, some need more, and others may need less. You need to understand your body and create a sleep schedule that works for you.
Research shows that blue light emitted by your phone screen can suppress melatonin. This hormone controls your sleep-wake cycle (aka circadian rhythm). As a result, the quality of your sleep is massively reduced.
About an hour before I go to bed, I’ll turn off my phone, MacBook, and any other devices that may interfere with my sleep. And instead of scrolling through social media, I’ll read a book until I feel like I’m ready to sleep.
Consider doing the same. Turn off your devices before going to bed. Put your phone in another room so you don’t check your notifications in the middle of the night. Doing this will improve the quality of your sleep, and consequently, your ability to focus during the day.
Final Thoughts
You can work extremely efficiently and accomplish pretty much anything you desire. However, you don’t need a fancy workspace to be productive. Instead, you just need to implement positive habits into your routine that improve your ability to focus.
Once you realize that productivity is all about your mindset, everything changes. You’ll start prioritizing your health, wellbeing, and other things that will have an extremely positive impact on every aspect of your life.
Adopt that mindset, and you’ll soon be a lot more productive than you could ever imagine.